They Fight Capitalism, Session 6

===START SESSION 6===
Pea Pod and Esta make it back to Murdock's bar in the early afternoon. Meanwhile Skren and Hexe have had some time to get acclimated. Asking around, Pea Pod and Esta would be directed to the auto-shop next door for finding Murdock. Meanwhile as Hexe and Skren emerge from the bunker, they'd find Murdock hard at work on repairing another car damaged in the previous night's fighting.

H.Ex.E.

"Is there anything we can help with?" Hexe asks Murdock. She watched him work for a minute or two before mustering the courage to ask. And checking whether Marle is around to dislike her attempt to work.

Arbiter Dox

"Nah, got a part-timer on th' way whose gonna help me get through this."

H.Ex.E.

"Right." An awkward silence is filled by working noise. Hexe seems a bit lost with literally nothing to do, so she now faces Skren in a silent question for orders, help... anything, really.

Dr. Skren

"I guess we'll be out looking for some work, then, huh?"

Arbiter Dox

Voltorb dramattically reduces the volume of its music playing as it says, "Approaching people." Pea Pod and Esta can see Murdock in the autoshop with a blue car placed over one of the jacks, quietly working on a hole in one of its doors. Dr. Skren and Hexe are nearby speaking to each other. The music player starts playing a bass heavy, meandering piece of psychedelic music. https://youtu.be/PosAi2YdW5g

Arbiter Dox

He glances up from his work as Pea Pod speaks, then goes right back to it as he replies. "Yeah? Anythin' more interesting than an animal attack?"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod replies "it looks like it is something alright, I am not sure what. But it aint no animal I ever seen."

Arbiter Dox

This makes Murdock pause for a moment. "What happened?"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod describes what he saw.

Dr. Skren

Skren also stopped talking to Hexe and is listening somewhat inconspicuously

Arbiter Dox

As the story ends, Murdock mutters, "No shit? Heard it was weird, but not THAT weird. Gimme a sec." He steps away from his work and pulls out a smartphone--though the device would be sized closer to a small tablet for the average user. The group hears one side of a conversation. "..." "'Ey, Rawlins. Guy from last night just got back from talkin' to Goat Kyle." "..." "Yeah, he did. Weird stuff." "..." Murdock gives a quick description of the state of the corpses Pea Pod reports. "...!" Rawlin's voice can be heard, though not understood. "Yeah but since when does that asshole listen to a single word he hears?" "..." "Right. Gotcha. Talk to you later." Murdock hangs up, pockets his phone, and picks right back up where he left off. As he works, he says to Pea Pod and Esta, "Ya'll mind stickin' around to tell Rawlins an' Marle th' story later?"

Esta

I'm fine with that

Pea Pod

Pea Pod says "yea I have footage I can edit so I will be here for a while."

Esta

I took some notes

Arbiter Dox

"I appreciate it," Murdock says. "Rawlins usually ain' free from his farm work 'til around 4:00 or so. Y' want ya'll can head over to th' pub for a late lunch while we wait for him t' get free?"

Pea Pod

"Will do, thank you." Replies Pea Pod

Arbiter Dox

He looks over to Hexe and Skren. "Offer applies t' you two as well."

Dr. Skren

"I'm down. Also, we couldn't help but overhear the story. What the actual fuck?"

Arbiter Dox

Murdock shakes his head. "Hell if I know."

H.Ex.E.

Hexe is less concerned with the story, but with the issue of having to deal with the nosey photographer again. However, instead about worrying about him just now, she tries to make sense of what he reported. And be it only to see him and his story crumble.

Dr. Skren

"Guess we could... stick around when they retell the story later. In any case, I'm hungry. Let's go to the pub, okay?" Skren asks Hexe

H.Ex.E.

"...right. Lead the way. I am not really hungry, though." Hexe who got a bit lost in her thoughts confirms and follows the doctor. She resists the urge to keep an eye on Pea Pod and his camera to not raise any suspicion and just follows the doctor.

Esta

Esta nods waves and heads back towards the pub.

Arbiter Dox

The pub area is sparsely populated at the moment; one pair of men in trucker hats are having a slow meal and conversation at one table, and there are two other tables taken up by a single customer each. Marle is behind the bar reading a novel at the moment. She looks up as the group comes in and says, "Lunchtime?"

H.Ex.E.

Hexe raises her hands in defence half-heartedly to not even give Marle or Rawlins a chance to pursue the topic much further before she heads for the table where they were robbed not long ago.

Dr. Skren

"Lunchtime indeed." the doctor responds. "Well, for us three, I assume" she says as she looks at Pea Pod and Esta

Pea Pod

Pea Pod nods as he fumbles with his tablet and camera

Esta

Lunch seems like a good idea

Arbiter Dox

Marle nods and writes down everyone's order as they come. Once done, she moves to a window to the kitchen and places the orders down. "Out in a bit."

Esta

Esta glances over at Dr. Skren & Hexe" did you guys find what you need?"

Dr. Skren

"We did"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod asks Dr. Skren " Are you a medical doctor?"

Dr. Skren

"Robotics and medicine, a bit more of the former"

Pea Pod

"Ahh, well still what is your opinion on the events I described?"

Dr. Skren

"As I said in the workshop... my opinion is pretty much 'what the actual fuck?' I can't make sense of it at all. Why would someone steal cow parts like that?"

Pea Pod

"Right, I can't figure it out either. I wonder if there were any other places that this might have happened? Maybe we need to stake out a place and see if we can catch the event live."

Dr. Skren

"I admit I am kinda curious what the hell's going on here"

H.Ex.E.

"I am sure they will get to the bottom of it." Hexe hurries to add.

Esta

Raises an eyebrow "they?"

Pea Pod

"I feel like we are missing one major piece, but we might get more from Rawlings hopefully."

H.Ex.E.

"You two are not working together on this?" Hexe adapts and twists her words that were meant as not-so-gentle reminder for the Doctor to not let her scientific curiosity get the better of her.

Dr. Skren

"Ah" Skren nods towards Hexe. "Yeah, yeah, we shouldn't intrude"

Arbiter Dox

The group's food arrives.

H.Ex.E.

Hexe just sits there to make it seem the most normal thing in the world that she didn't order anything.

Pea Pod

Pea Pod starts slurping up some corn chowder, as he flick's through his pictures and video's on his tablet.

Dr. Skren

Skren is quick to dig into her meaty stew to avoid conversation.

Pea Pod

Pea Pod turns his tablet towards the table and says, "does this look like anything?"

Esta

Esta digs in to her plate and glances over at what Pea Pod brings up

Dr. Skren

Skren also looks up at the tablet

Pea Pod

"Is that something on the tree? A marking?" "I kinda see a letter maybe? is it a word? maybe a C?" "capitalism? maybe. I could be seeing things. You know the old saying your eyes are playing tricks on ya."

H.Ex.E.

Hexe who had a look earlier now leans back. Grasping on straws is one thing, but now this guy is really pushing it.

Esta

Esta leans closer to get a better look

Arbiter Dox

It's a stretch, a set of scratches on the bark. The photograph is of good quality, but the 'symbol' being photographed is vague. The mark could have been done with claws or a knife. It has a 'C' shape to it for sure, but was that intentional? Hard to say.

Esta

"It does look like a C" shrugs "could mean anything"

Dr. Skren

"Could just be cows, all things considered"

Pea Pod

"Oh yea!"

Dr. Skren

"Or crazy, which is what the perpetrator probably was"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod chuckles, then turns the tablet back and puts it away. "I really appreciate the help. Dr. Skren do you provide robot repair services?"

Dr. Skren

"Well, I guess we'll be staying here for a while. I can do that."

Pea Pod

"Well I was wondering more if you were running a business?"

Dr. Skren

"Oh, no, we do uh... contract work. And we are just in the are until we got another big job somewhere else" Skren looks at Hexe for approval of the hastily made up explanation

Pea Pod

Pea Pod shivers, "oh man I do not miss being on contract work. Those were some tough jobs."

H.Ex.E.

She is greeted by thin lips and a rather bleak expression followed by a vague nod.

Pea Pod

"What was your shittiest contract? If I may ask?"

Dr. Skren

"Government work"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod gets visibly upset "oh fuck that" "you got me beat"

H.Ex.E.

Hexe reaches for Skren's hand under the table and squeezes it gently. Her expression above the table remains indifferent.

Dr. Skren

Skren softly squeezes it back and responds. "Yeah. Never again" with a bitter tone

Pea Pod

"I would go hungry before I worked for those fucks." As Pea Pod slurps some more corn chowder "Doctor, can I just call you Doctor?"

Dr. Skren

"Yeah sure"

Arbiter Dox

The group spots Rawlins entering the pub. He heads to Marle and they have a quick conversation. As their conversation dies down, they split up. Rawlins pulls out his smartphone and heads toward the back room where the group went to avoid the cops the previous night. Meanwhile Marle approaches the group and says, "Hey, mind comin' to the back room for a minute?"

Dr. Skren

Skren looks at the others. "Uhm, sure?"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod gulps the rest of the chowder and says "sure."

Arbiter Dox

Marle leads the way back. The group would remember the room from the previous night; a comfortable old couch, a few scattered chairs, and a TV, currently switched off. Inside Rawlins is speaking with an angry tone to Murdock, and the group enters mid sentence. "--these assholes to tell people when weird shit happen!" Murdock waves to Rawlins. The rat-man (in much more casual clothing this time) takes a deep breath and visibly tries to tamp down on his annoyance. Marle says, "Right. So." She looks to Pea Pod and says, "You get all this info from Goat Kyle?"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod replies, "yea... am I in trouble?"

Arbiter Dox

Rawlins shakes his head. "Sorry, I'm pissed at Goat Kyle, not you." Murdock says, "Folks here don't talk about their business. Most 'v the time that's fine, but when weird shit like this comes up it just makes things harder." Marle asks, "This the only instance we know about?" Rawlins replies, "Yeah. Who knows if more folks are keeping their mouths shut though?"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod interjects, "keeping there mouths shut about what?"

Arbiter Dox

Murdock says, "More animal mutilations, maybe. If there's someone or something out there taking animal parts, why'd it stop with two cows?"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod says, "right cuz it was almost a month ago. Are there any other places that might be a target? Another farm maybe?"

Arbiter Dox

Marle says, "Well, that means someone's gotta go collectin' info." Rawlins adds, "I'll see if I can get some of th' farmhands t' talk t' me. That's how I found out about this one. Rumor mill 'n all that." Murdock looks to Pea Pod and says, "You're here researchin' anyway. Up for helpin' us figure this out?"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod nods and says "yea I can help."

Arbiter Dox

"I ain't much've an investigator if we're talkin' to people, but you guys can use this spot to coordinate whenever," Murdock says. Marle looks to the other three folks in the room. "Are you guys going to be here for long? If so we could use your help too." Murdock adds, "We can pay you for it."

Esta

"I'm curious and have nothing pressing" pauses shrugs "I'm in"

H.Ex.E.

Hexe waits for the Doctor's reply, but nods faintly towards her.

Dr. Skren

"We'll be here for a while. I guess we can lend a hand"

H.Ex.E.

"As the Doctor allows it, sure."

Arbiter Dox

Rawlins nods. "Great." Marle says, "I'll start figurin' out who all we need to talk to tonight. I'll get a list made and tomorrow we'll start interviewin' folks."

Pea Pod

Pea Pod nods approvingly.
===END SESSION 6===

They Fight Capitalism, Session 5

===START SESSION 5===
The Greenfield Ranch doesn't have much to see at the first glance. Simple fences around the pastures, a barn out in the distance, and a small, plain house in the middle. The duo see an old but functional track in the driveway as they approach. No one approaches or responds as the two get out of the car.

Pea Pod

Pea Pod looks around and says to Esta "I guess we go knock on the door?"

Esta

shrugs "seems like a place to start"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod walks to the front door and knocks firmly

Arbiter Dox

A few moments after the knocking, a small goat girl--maybe 8-9 years old--cracks the door and peers out. "Uhm... Are you lookin' for papaw?"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod nods and says "yes were are, can you tell us where he is?"

Arbiter Dox

"He's workin'. I'm s'posed to call 'im and tell 'im what you want."

Pea Pod

"Oh ok, well can you tell him some people are here to talk to him about the mysterious things going on around the farm."

Esta

while Pea Pod is talking with the child Esta takes a step back and has a look at the outside of the house.

Arbiter Dox

She hesitates for a moment at that. "Uh... Okay. One second." She closes the door and walks away from it for a moment. The house Esta's looking at is old. Its wooden siding painted a color that was probably supposed to be white, but has over time faded to a dull hue. Looking close, Esta can spot places where the house has been damaged and repaired. It's big enough for a maximum of two bedrooms. The girl comes back to the door again, smartphone in hand. "Papaw says he wants to know if you're with the po-lice or uh--the feds?"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod chuckles to himself and then says "I am a film maker working on documenting the unknown and this is my assistant. We have no affiliation with the pigs or the feds."

Arbiter Dox

She speaks into the phone, "He says no." A pause as she listens to the reply, and then she says, "He says he'll be here in a few minutes. I'm not s'posed to let strangers in the house, but I can bring you some water if you need?"

Pea Pod

"I am ok, thank you though."

Esta

"same"

Arbiter Dox

"Mmmkay." She leaves the door, closing it behind her. A couple of minutes later a figure approaches. This is an older goat man, about 5'6" tall and with an average build. He has curved ram horns, hazel eyes, and flowing white fur. An earring is placed in his left ear, a simple copper loop. He's allowed the fur on his chin to grow much longer and has it gathered into a simple braid. He wears a simple brown shirt and blue jeans. https://pin.it/6sUKRDc He approaches, eyeing the duo critically as he approaches. "I'm Goat Kyle." After that curt introduction, he adds, "Got a busy day 'head a' me, strangers, so I ain' got a lotta time for ya. Who are ya, why you here, what you want?"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod bows slightly and says "Hello Mr. Kyle my Name is Pea Pod and this is Esta. we are here trying to document the unexplanied. I was told by the very friendly Rawlins that you had some interesting things happen hear at the ranch. Do you mind telling us all about it?"

Esta

Esta give a similar bow & nod arms folded into her sleeves.

Arbiter Dox

He snorts. "Interestin' ain't the right word. 'S fuckin' weird." He gives Pea Pod's camera a glare. "You some kind a' reporter then?"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod shakes his head no, and says "I am a film maker. I am working on a documentary of the unexplained. Can we film here Mr. Kyle?"

Arbiter Dox

"Huh." Kyle tilts his head, clearly not expecting that answer. After a moment of thought, he says, "I'll allow it, but 'cha got two rules to follow. No filmin' inside any a' my buildin's, an' no filmin' any of my people unless you ask 'em first. Some a' my ranch-hands are gonna wanna ham it up for yer camera, an' the rest ain' gonna want anythin' to do with it." "We got an understandin'?"

Pea Pod

"Its a deal."

Arbiter Dox

Kyle nods and says, "Follow me, got a couple minutes a' walkin'. Tell ya what I know on th' way."

Pea Pod

Pea Pod grabs his camera and gets it ready and starts following.

Arbiter Dox

Goat Kyle start walking and talking. "So. This's about three weeks ago. Ranch-hands are out countin' horns like normal, and they come up two heads short. Cows tend t' like t' stick t'gether so that ain't normal. We start lookin' for our missin' stock. 'Sa big ranch so that takes a while." "Eventually one a' th' ranch hands comes back, tells me he's found a buncha sliced up cows near th' south edga a' the ranch." He points a direction to clarify. "I come by, sure 'nuff couple my girls 're dead, missin' their skin, an' several of their organs. Left a lotta meat behind on 'em, so we figure it cain't be no animal attack; they'd a' ate it." "An' that's 'bout all I know. We set up a couple game cameras in th' area, ain't seen a damn thing worth seein' with 'em. We got no idea what happened."

Pea Pod

"That is quite a unique story Mr. Kyle, I don't think I have heard any similar to that in my travels. Is the ranch-hand that found the bodies here today?"

Arbiter Dox

"Yup. Youngin' loves a camera too, betcha he'll be eager t' talk." At this point the group has nearly reached the main herd. There are folks on horseback and on foot, going about the everyday work of taking care of cattle.

Pea Pod

As Pea Pod approaches he takes a few panning shots of the animals, making sure to avoid the folks on horseback.

Esta

while Pea Pod is taking photos Esta takes out her phone and takes some notes on the tail Goat Kyle told while they walk.

Arbiter Dox

As the approach, Kyle takes a pager from his belt. "Approachin' from the farmhouse. Chuck, got some folks who're gonna wanna talk to ya, come pay us a visit." From the pager, a deep voice replies, "On th' way, boss." One of the ranch-hands breaks away and starts approaching the group. The man who approaches is a muscular wolf-man. He has mostly gray fur, aside from the white on his face. He has hazel eyes and a short snout. He wears a simple black shirt, blue jeans, and a light patterned scarf around his neck. https://pin.it/4s0F9L3 He reigns his horse in and asks, "What's up, boss?" Kyle introduces Esta and Pea Pod. "These two are here ta make a 'documentary of th' unexplained.' They're interested in whatcha found a few weeks ago. Take an hour an' help them out?" Chuck perks up at this news. "Uuuh, yeah, sure, I can do that." Kyle beckons him downward. "Lemme get that horse." Once Kyle is back on his way to ranch work, the wolf man approaches the two. "Call me Chuck. Been workin' for Goat Kyle for about five years now. You guys here 'bout the dead cows?"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod nods and says "yeah that is something else. You mind telling us all about it?"

Esta

nods at chuck in acknowledgement

Arbiter Dox

"Yeah, we can talk about it. Weird stuff, man. Here, I'll show ya where they were." He beckons for them to follow.

Pea Pod

Pea Pod gets camera ready and follows

Arbiter Dox

As the group wanders to ground zero, Chuck attempts small talk. "So, documentary maker. How's that life go, man?"

Pea Pod

"It's a unique line of work. Everyday is something unexpected."

Arbiter Dox

He chuckles at that. "I think that'd drive me crazy. I like a lotta routine in my day."

Pea Pod

Pea Pod looks at his camera to make sure its recording then says, "I don't doubt it."

Arbiter Dox

Chuck stops. "Right. So, here's the place." The group is at the top of a small hill at the moment. A few yards from the bottom of the hill there's a simple perimeter fence. He points at a spot at the base of the hill. "Found one of our stock there. I'm guessin' she started at the top a' this here hill and rolled down." He moves forward a bit and points at the fence. "Second one was over there."

Pea Pod

Pea Pod pans his camera accordingly Then Pea Pod says to Chuck "now explain in great detail what you saw."

Arbiter Dox

"Right, so. This's gonna get gross." Chuck puts his hands on his hips and says, "Weren't an inch a' skin or a drop a' blood left on 'em when I found 'em. Completely stripped and drained, bones and meat left t' rot." "Th' one down there--" he points to the base of the hill, "--had all her stomachs and intestines removed." He points to the fence again. "The one over there had no head, heart, or lungs." He opens his mouth to say something more, but stops and seems to decide to keep it to himself.

Pea Pod

Pea Pod looks up from behind the camera and says "is everything ok?"

Esta

looks up from taking notes on her phone to look up at Chuck at Pea Pod's question.

Arbiter Dox

"Yyyeah," he replies. "Uh, where was I... Right! So, uhm... After we find 'em, we radio in to th' boss. Goat Kyle comes down here, we spend a few minutes tryin' t' figure what coulda done this, an' we get nowhere." "Finally, boss just says 'waste not want not' and we get the bodies ready for compost. Couple a' guys wanna call the police, but boss ain't exactly friendly with the cops, so that ain' happenin'. Since then it's been a buncha speculatin' an' lookin' at random critters trippin' our game cameras."

Pea Pod

Pea Pod looks up from the camera again and says "wow that is quite the ordeal. Did you get sick or feel ill at all?"

Arbiter Dox

Chuck raises an eyebrow at that question and replies, "Uh... not really? Not that I can remember. Had a bit a' bile when we first saw the corpses, I guess. Even without blood, it was a hell of a mess. Whatever did this just tossed aside th' organs it didn't take."

Pea Pod

"Interesting, it took the blood and skin but left the organs." Pea Pod stops recording. He says to Chuck "well that was good, I think I have a good start, if you need to get back to work I can poke around and if I have any more questions I can ask for ya." Pea Pod turns his camera back on and says "Oh one last question, did this "thing" leave any tracks or marks?"

Arbiter Dox

Chuck shakes his head. "If it did we couldn't find 'em."

Pea Pod

"Shit" Pea Pod says rather aggressively "Well I guess I can try to get some B-roll and then that might be it for now, unless Esta you have anything that I might have missed?"

Esta

she pauses looking over her notes... looking up a Chuck "did the butchering look clean like knives or was it rough like bites?"

Arbiter Dox

He replies, "I ain' an expert in animal bites, but if I had to guess I'd say knives. Weren't any big hunks outta the muscle or anythin'."

Esta

nods at Chuck once again. Looks at Pea Pod "That's all I've got..."

Pea Pod

Pea Pod says "Thank you Chuck, if you think of anything else here is info" and Pea Pod hands him a business card.

Arbiter Dox

Chuck takes the card and nods. "Arright, yeah, I'll keep you in mind. We've been on the lookout for repeats; if that happens I'll give you a call." "Anythin' else?"

Pea Pod

"Nope I think we got a lot here."

Arbiter Dox

Chuck nods. "Arright. Hope yer documentary turns out good. Lemme walk ya'll to your car."

Pea Pod

Pea Pod says "thank you, I hope so too" and follows Chuck

Arbiter Dox

=*=Meanwhile=*=

H.Ex.E.

Having only light luggage, she is done rather fast. A PDA, a set of tools for finer mechanical workings and some other items are stored in convenient easy-to reach places. She checks the door with a look over her shoulder before she reaches deep down into the bag and pulls out a somewhat ragged brown plushy bunny. The button eyes have been reattached several times, the stuffing could probably be a bit more voluminous and the fur has definitely seen better days. She gently pets its head and lays it into the bed, covering it up to its neck with the blanket. Then Hexe leaves her room and knocks at the Doctors' one to check whether she needs some help to settle in.

Dr. Skren

Skren doesn't really have a lot of luggage either, mostly a laptop and a bit of medical equipment, that she's already set up on the table. She gets up from the laptop and opens the door to see Hexe. "Better than some of the places we've stayed at, before, for sure."

H.Ex.E.

Hexe enters. "I am genuinely surprised our host, or rather his ToB community has built themselves such an elaborate haven without the officials catching wind of it. However, I do feel a little bad that we cannot really share much more with Mr Metalmender. We are putting the entire village at risk after all." She sighs audibly. "As usual." She tries to look at the screen. "Already hard at work again?"

Dr. Skren

"Always!" Skren laughs "Nah, just reading the news right now. We still don't know 100% just how much we messed up, last time"

H.Ex.E.

Hexe frowns at the memory before she seems to remember something. "I have some good news, though. While you were asleep last night, I battled it out with myself again and made a breakthrough." She points at her eyes using her middle and index finger. "With my new control over the sensors, I can likely look even further than what I attempted out of the inn's window, given a suitable vantage point. Or tell you the eye colour of that bird in the nearest trees across a meadow." She does not exactly beam with pride, but the Doctor might get the impression that she would love to.

Dr. Skren

"You are absolutely amazing, girl!" Skren moves in to hug her

H.Ex.E.

"That's... it's... Nothing really... Thank you, Samantha." Hexe mumbles into the doctor's fur as she rests her head on her shoulder for a moment. "It's still a long way to go. But at least I feel more in control now. I am still... unsure whether I should be glad or afraid of this potential, given how all of this turned out." , she speaks into the Doctors's ear in a low voice.

Dr. Skren

"Yeah, I understand... we'll get this worked out. I just want you to be able to accept yourself and be happy..." she whispers

H.Ex.E.

She can feel Hexe nodding silently at her shoulder, enjoying the hug just a bit longer before stepping away again. "Sooooo..." A moment of awkward silence follows and Hexe scratches the back of her head. "Anything of worth in the news? And speaking of worth, I hate to bring it up, but.... You probably drank our last money away yesterday." There is no reproach in the girls' voice. She just spoke as matter of fact. They duo is broke.

Arbiter Dox

There is not a damned thing of worth in the news.

Dr. Skren

"Nothing! I was mostly worried about our faces popping up somewhere, but I guess we're safe. And I'm not in the mood to start doomscrolling social media to see some neckbeards complain about the graphics in the latest video game for kids, so..." she closes the laptop.

H.Ex.E.

Hexe smirks at that but says nothing.

Dr. Skren

"Wanna catch some fresh air? Although the ventilation system down here is damn good."

H.Ex.E.

"Sure. Maybe we even get an assignment to fill our pockets and your belly." Hexe winks at the Doctor and opens the door for her, doing a mocking bow again before her face is back to a neutral expression and she is back in her usual position at Skren's heels.

Arbiter Dox

The two leave the rooms they've claimed. Heading back to the living area, the two would find a sheet of notebook paper with text written by a sharpie. "Went back to work upstairs -M"

H.Ex.E.

"Shall we?" Hexe throw's the note away in the bin after checking it carefully for some less obvious message before she opens the door to the stairway back to the workshop.

Dr. Skren

"Sure!" Skren follows

Arbiter Dox

A trip back upstairs sees them coming out in Murdock's shop. The stonebrother is currently putting the finishing touches on the vehicle he was working on before, re-doing the paint job where the frame previously had a hole in it. He and the woman who was working in the bar that morning are idly chatting as he works. There's brief pause in the music he's listening to as his bot assistant announces, "People approaching." Marle looks up and spots the two at this message. "Oh, hey. You two must be M's new guests?"

Dr. Skren

"That's us" Skren responds with a slight smile

Arbiter Dox

"Well. I'm Marle Janice Lee. Me, Rawlins, and Murdock go way back." Without looking up from his work, Murdock adds, "Show knows everything I know; we don't keep secrets."

H.Ex.E.

Back in her public role, Hexe just nods politely and leaves the conversation to the Doctor.

Arbiter Dox

Marle looks to Hexe with concern. "Y' didn't tell me the ToB were sending kids out on mission now." Murdock replies dryly, "I saw her fight. She can handle herself." Marle looks unconvinced, but lets the subject drop. "How you two like the hideout?"

Dr. Skren

"Comfier than I could have possible expected. We're really grateful"

H.Ex.E.

"We really are. Soft beds, a safe haven..." Then her age gets the better of her. "..and even games! Thanks a bunch."

Arbiter Dox

"Eh, 'nother gamer?" Murdock says, still not looking up from the car he's working on. "Feel free to start your own profile on the Gamestation 6."

H.Ex.E.

"I may? Cool! I am pretty good, you know." she proclaims with the blissful ignorance of an enthusiastic child before she notices that this is probably not of much concern right now. "I mean... thank you." She hides behind her jacket's collar, slightly embarrassed now.

Dr. Skren

The doctor grins.

Arbiter Dox

"Yeah? Guess we'll put that to th' test later then." Marle smiles and says, "You might've just walked into a trap there. Murdock plays so many games that he's colored his armor after one." He replies, "The character's name is Rockman and he fights with an arm cannon. What'm I s'posed to do, pretend that's not perfect?"

Dr. Skren

The doctor audibly snorts now and ruffles Hexe's hair a little. "I'll try to keep the fridge stocked, once we earn some money, so no worries, I won't drink all your beer"

Arbiter Dox

Murdock replies, "Well first off, don't worry 'bout food at all. Rawlins takes care 'v that. He's made it his personal mission that no one in 50 miles goes hungry. As for th' drinks, yer fine t' drink mine while yer figurin' things out 'round here." Marle says, "I might be able to help with the money a bit. What're you good at? I know folks."

H.Ex.E.

Hexe side-eyes the doctor. There is plenty she could do, but some of it she definitely should not do. Or Skren does not allow her to do.

Dr. Skren

"Tech shit and medicine, I guess. The girl's amazing at surveillance and stuff"

H.Ex.E.

"Tinkering with software is also my forte. She is better with hardware." Hexe nods towards the car Murdock is working on.

Arbiter Dox

The idea of Hexe working seems to set off Marle, but she holds her tongue for now. Murdock replies, "Honestly, I might hire you two m'self for some tech shit. Someone else helping build and coordinate bots could be helpful." "You showed 'em th' real garage yet?" Marle asks. "Not yet. Later. Need t' finish this first; folks need these vehicles to get to their jobs."

Dr. Skren

"The real garage, eh? Color me intrigued."

Arbiter Dox

"Like I said, later," Murdock replies. Murdock steps back from the vehicle he's working on. There's still a slight mark where the damage was done, but it's subtle. "Almost good as new." He steps back and says, "Gonna get this 'n outta the way and started on th' next." Marle says, "We aughta get outta Murdock's business for a bit, he's busy." She beckons for the other two to follow her while Murdock starts rolling the car out of place in neutral. (He is too big to fit in the car to drive it into place.) Once clear, Marle says, "Rawlins takes care 'v food, Murdock takes care 'v tech, I take care of th' rest. Anything I aughta do or set up for you two, make your stay a little better?"

H.Ex.E.

Hexe thinks for a moment. Given her rather limited demand when it comes to comfort she cannot come up with anything. "Nothing I could think of off the top of my head. Thank you for the open welcome of us strangers." A tiny hint of guilt is in those words.

Arbiter Dox

She shrugs. "If you're in th' ToB enough for 'em to send you to us, we're on the same team. No worries."

Dr. Skren

"I can't think of anything either right now. Maybe some spare clothes if we're gonna stay here a while? We're used to travelling light."

Arbiter Dox

Marle nods. "I can make that happen, sure." She looks over the two's current outfits and says, "What I get's prolly gonna be a bit less... loud. Just so y' know."

Dr. Skren

Skren shifty-eyes Hexe and rubs her neck in embarrassment "Uh... yeah, I imagined. Thank you"
===END SESSION 5===

They Fight Capitalism, Session 4

===START SESSION 4===
The group emerges from the bar and hotel and start wandering to the other main building nearby. It's a gas station and simple auto-repair shop with stations for two vehicles. The fuel pumps are clean and well maintained, with digital displays with options for multiple languages. Both stations contain a well-used and maintained carjacks. There's a small office off to the side that contains a cash register, a small refrigerator with drinks, and a small stand with snacks. Murdock is at work on one of the cars that was damage in the previous night's fighting. The round anti-grav droid visible from last night is gently floating behind him, playing a piece of psychedelic rock music as he works. https://youtu.be/sRhCvI-YAQI There's a momentary gap in the music as the droid announces, "Visitors approaching."

Dr. Skren

The doctor tries to stay in the back a little and let the others deal with their business first.

H.Ex.E.

Hexe approves this course of action with a slight nod, stepping at Skren's side while waiting for the others to be finished so they can talk in private.

Pea Pod

Pea Pod walking over towards Murdoc says "Hello, what a lovely place you have here. How long have you had this place Mr. Murdock?"

Dr. Skren

Skren whispers to Hexe "I'm also kinda curious what business these clowns have with Murdock"

Arbiter Dox

Murdock pauses in his work as the group approaches. He's in a simple brown jumpsuit that looks to have been beat to hell over many years of use, with various small oil and grease stains that come with auto work over them. He replies to Pea Pod, "Been around here for about 20 years now."

Pea Pod

Pea Pod nods and says "well you have quite a fine establishment, and should I ever need car repairs I will surly come here. I have a couple things to talk about if you have a moment. One of which I think is in regards to the events of the other night."

H.Ex.E.

Now Hexe raises a brow to the Doctor and nods again.

Arbiter Dox

"I can take a break," he replies, wiping his hands off on a towel that has probably seen as much abuse as his jumpsuit. "So first off, I wanted to thank you folks for intervening last night. You're are welcome to stay in the pub while you're visitin' our little town, free of charge."

Pea Pod

Pea Pod nods and says "Thank you. I will most certainly take that offer."

Arbiter Dox

"I's curious how long you folks were plannin' to stay around?"

Pea Pod

Pea Pod says "I am here on work," and Pea Pod points to his camera. "Once that is done I will be on my way, though I am not sure how long that will take."

Dr. Skren

"Not sure yet" Skren replies.

Pea Pod

Esta "just passing through but" shrugs "but might be around longer then I thought"

Arbiter Dox

"Mmm, arright. Well, hope you enjoy our town while you're here." Murdock nods to Pea Pod. "What kinda work? You some kinda reporter?"

H.Ex.E.

"We would aim to leave for...another place as soon as possible after meeting you, Mister Metalmender." Hexe is being vague on purpose and carefully observes his reaction which requires her to raise her head to look into his face.

Arbiter Dox

"No worries. We get a lotta folks just passin' through."

Dr. Skren

Skren shifty eyes Hexe and manages to suppress actually saying "Always the smartass" out loud

Pea Pod

"I am working on a documentary," Pea Pod reply's. "On that note actually I was wondering if you knew anything about Greenfield Ranch."

Arbiter Dox

As the documentary comes up, he says, "Ah, good luck with that." To the Ranch, he shakes his head. "You'd be better off askin' Rawlins or Marle about that. Rawlins bein' the barkeep from last night, Marle being the lady watchin' the shop this mornin'. I've fixed their equipment a couple times here and there but that's about all I've done.

Pea Pod

Pea Pod nods and says "I will. Do you happen to know how to get to the ranch?"

Arbiter Dox

He nods and says to his droid, "Voltorb, get a map outta the office, would ya?" The droid chirps and ducks into the side office for a moment, returning with a folded map. Murdock unfolds it and draws a star on it with a pen from his pocket. "This is where you are now." He then gives instructions, pointing to a final point on the map. "Here's the place. Note that folks around here ain' super welcomin' of strangers, so they might not wanna talk to you. If someone around here tells you t' piss off, you do it." The instructions are simple; the layout of this area is not complicated.

H.Ex.E.

Hexe carefully steps closer to observe the map and memorises it with a glance before retreating to the Doctor's side.

Pea Pod

Esta leans forward to take a look at the map, purely out of curiosity.

Arbiter Dox

The map shows that this area is a central point leading to some very different landscapes. To the south there's nothing but green on the map, occasionally crisscrossed by straight lines. To the north, a forest surrounding a mountain range.

Dr. Skren

Skren nods approvingly at Hexe

Pea Pod

Pea Pod takes off his lens cap and snaps a picture of the map. Then says "thank you, and I will." He then taps a note to himself on his tablet in all caps and giant font size DO NOT PISS OFF LOCALS!!!

Arbiter Dox

Murdock nods and folds up the map, offering it to Pea Pod. "We got a buncha these in the office, you can have it."

Pea Pod

"Oh thank you so much" replies Pea Pod.

Arbiter Dox

"You wanna make a documentary about th' area, I'd say start talkin' to Marle and Rawlins about it. They know folks around here better than me, I just fix shit."

Pea Pod

Pea Pod nods then asks "what is this nonsense with the gang?"

Arbiter Dox

Murdock exhales loudly at that. "Still figurin' out th' details, but the whole thing started up about two weeks ago. That bull-dog guy's always been a fuck-up, and he got the idea to find some other local fuck-ups and just take what he wants. That plus the cops around here 'r less than useless--" He lets the sentence end with a shrug.

Dr. Skren

"What a surprise" scoffs Skren at that last part

Pea Pod

"What a lovely bunch of people" Pea Pod chuckles. "Oh thanks for talking to the police, really appreciate it."

Pea Pod

"yes much appreciated for that!"

Arbiter Dox

"Rawlins, Marle, and I've been taking care of them since we set up shop here. We've got enough of an understandin' that they leave us alone. There'd be riots if the pigs shut down the only good bar in town."

H.Ex.E.

"Lucky us.", murmurs Hexe to Skren while still staring ahead to make their conversation less obvious.

Pea Pod

"Do you think the gang is still going to be a problem?" Pea Pod asks.

Arbiter Dox

"More 'n half of 'em are in jail right now. Doesn' mean they're done forever, but it does mean they're done for now. Depends on what Brick does next, but I figure we've got a couple weeks a' quiet at least." "Anythin' else we need t' talk about?" He looks to Pea Pod and Esta. "Got a lotta work cleanin' up after last night's party still t' do." He nods his head toward the truck whose exterior he's still repairing.

Pea Pod

Pea Pod says "Thank you for everything, and if I need something else I know where to find you."

Pea Pod

Esta shakes her head, "I have no particular questions, but again thank you for clearing things up for all of us"

Arbiter Dox

Murdock nods. "Alright. Well, thanks again for your help last night. I've told Marle what happened last night, if you got more you wanna ask, she'd actually know what's going on around here."

H.Ex.E.

"Brick being... the local enforcer?" Hexe asks from the sidelines.

Arbiter Dox

"Bulldog guy," Murdock clarifies.

H.Ex.E.

Hexe just nods at this. She shouldn't have assumed.

Pea Pod

Pea Pod turns around to the group and asks "well do any of yall need anything to do today? If so I could use some help finding this Greenfield Ranch."

Dr. Skren

Skren snorts. "Brick. What a stupid name. Dumb as a brick too, judging by last night"

Pea Pod

smirks at the DR.'s comment

Dr. Skren

"We got something to talk about with Murdock, so I doubt we'll have time" she responds to Pea Pod

Pea Pod

and then to Pea Pod "I can join you, need something to do for awhile"

H.Ex.E.

Hexe gives Pea Pod the go-by. That individual is way too extroverted.

Pea Pod

Pea Pod looks at Skren and gestures with his arm and says "he's all yours. If you get bored you know where I will be." "Oh wonderful!" Pea Pod reaches out his hand toward Esta for a shake.

Pea Pod

Esta does the same

Pea Pod

Pea Pod asks Esta "do you drive?"

Pea Pod

she shakes her head "I get around by hoverboard when I need to."

Pea Pod

Pea Pod chuckles and says "I have always been real scared of those things."

Pea Pod

"they aren't that bad"

Pea Pod

"Thats what they all say, then you crack your head on the pavement and never talk straight again. But no worries I rented a car so we can use that. Are you good to go?"

Pea Pod

nods "I am" waves to the others and head toward the door.

Pea Pod

Pea Pod joins in on the wave and follows Esta out

Arbiter Dox

Esta and Pea Pod head to the parking lot where Pea Pod's rented car await. It's not fancy or eye catching, but it gets decent gas mileage and is fairly well maintained so it works. It was also not damaged in the previous night's antics. The two enter the vehicle and have about a 30-45 minutes to kill on the way. About ten minutes into the drive the duo have left Terry's Jucture proper. The rest of the way is split between miles and miles and miles of corn fields, and the occasional bit of pasture in hilly terrain. Corn and cows, as far as the eye can see.

Pea Pod

"so what's the interest in Greenfield Ranch?"

Pea Pod

"Well I asked Rawlins if he knew of any odd things happening around the area, and he said that the Greenfield Ranch had some possible odd things happening there." "Now do you happen to believe in the unexplained?"

Pea Pod

"I am a student of the Trinity of Benevolence, if something can't be explained it just hasn't been reveled to us yet"

Pea Pod

"Oh really. I have heard of them, they are trying to get us away from all this capitalist's bullshit, right?"

Pea Pod

nods "that is part of it, they are followers of the great O. Possum God, Pork Belly, & the Mountain Mother."

Pea Pod

"Ah so its a religion?"

Pea Pod

"yes"... pauses for a moment... "any particular reason your working on a cryptid documentary?"

Pea Pod

"Well I guess you could say I want people to believe or at least give it more than a scoff and what better way than to record it."

Pea Pod

"true"

Pea Pod

"I personally want nothing more than to find actual proof of other life. I mean we can travel in space how can there not be something else out there, or something else here for that matter."

Pea Pod

"There is definitely more out there/here Mother Mountain has to much to give for there only to be what we know."

Pea Pod

"How does one go about practicing this belief system? Do you have to recruit a certain amount of people or is it just a meet up on tuesdays and talk about stuff?"

Pea Pod

"we channel much of our energy in to charity and art, the gods support those that support those around them"

Pea Pod

"That sounds really nice. I do love good art, doing photography as a hobby has shown me lots of great artists, but I would love to see what yall get up to sometime if you will have me. Do yall like go to big conventions or something?

Pea Pod

"you will more likely see us gather at local art fairs, and soup kitchens, I'm not sure where the community or if the community has a presence in this area but I will gladly show you around if the opportunity arises." ..."Do you have a certain subject matter you like to photograph?"

Pea Pod

"Oh so like grassroots kinda stuff, I dig that. Yea I have been trying to photograph the unexplained, and when there isn't much of that going on my favorite subject matter is clouds / storms and other weather stuff. What brought you to this quaint town if I may ask?'

Pea Pod

"Happenstance, I was making my way through the area and Terry's Juncture seemed like a good place to stop for the night" "Is there a reason you are looking for cryptids here?"

Pea Pod

"Well I am from Fuldor where all you see is advertisement's and shit to buy and things to do, and I really needed to get some footage of a place where there might actually be real cryptids. It was really time for me to get out of the big urban city where there is to much to do and just find a place where I can actually see the weather and not smog all the time. This was a work trip as much as a personal trip."

Arbiter Dox

The duo finally reaches the turn to Greenfield Ranch. It should only be a few minutes until they arrive. =*=Meanwhile=*=

H.Ex.E.

"I dislike that paparazzo." Hexe stares holes in said paparazzo's back as he leaves. "He draws attention, and unless he draws it away from us that could become a problem."

Dr. Skren

"Yeahhh"

Arbiter Dox

Murdock shrugs. "Not sure what to do about that for now. We'll see how much trouble he makes, I guess."

Dr. Skren

"In any case, we were told to find you for the purpose of... keeping low for a while. And we've already seen you're good at that, last night. Kudos."

H.Ex.E.

Hexe drops her façade as well now that they are alone with Murdock and follows the conversation.

Arbiter Dox

"Right. So. To fill you in, I'm with the ToB. There's a lot more to my little corner of town than meets the eye." He points downward.

H.Ex.E.

"...and we can be of help. Shelter for work.", she concludes.

Dr. Skren

Skren nods.

Arbiter Dox

He nods. "There'll be things I need help with, yeah. We can figure that out once we've got you settled in. Here, follow me." Murdock beckons for the others to follow. He sets a sign out that says "back in 30 minutes" and gives some instructions for his droid to handle things while he's out. Murdock leads the two into a small basement in the auto-shop. Spare tools and parts are distributed around the room. If there's any sorting mechanism, it's not immediately obvious. He approaches a door with a keypad lock to its side and enters a code. The door opens to another smaller storeroom with more valuable looking parts and tools, plus a door that leads to a downward staircase. Two stories down leads to another door which opens into a wide open space with a vaulted ceiling above. It looks like a casual lounge area with plush seating arranged around a table and TV. Multiple game consoles are attached to it. There's a small kitchen nook as well. Murdock says, "Welcome to my man-cave. Most of the town has no idea this is down here. Same for the authorities."

H.Ex.E.

Hexe scans the room. "Is there a second exit?"

Dr. Skren

"Cozy" Skren remarks

Arbiter Dox

Murdock nods and moves to the other side of the room, where he opens two more doors that lead upwards. He points to one and says, "This comes out in the bar's freezer." To the other, he says, "This leads into my above-ground house. That's there mostly to keep up appearances."

Dr. Skren

"Well thought-out." the doctor says approvingly. "So I assume you already know about us?"

Arbiter Dox

"I know you guys need shelter from the feds. They didn't tell me the rest." He heads to the kitchen's fridge and pulls out a beer. "You guys want somethin' to drink? We got cold beer, soda, juice in here."

Dr. Skren

"I'll have a beer"

H.Ex.E.

"I pass." Short pause. "Thank you."

Arbiter Dox

Murdock brings out another can of beer for the Doctor and invites the group to sit on the assembled couches.

H.Ex.E.

Hexe glances at Skren and leaves the talking to her - as usual. If she were the one to lead the negotiations, Murdoch would probably not learn anything more than their names. She sighs audibly as she sits down but hopes to have made it look as if that sigh was a relaxing one.

Arbiter Dox

"So. No pressure, you guys get shelter here either way. I'd still like to know what we're dealin' with if you're ready to share though."

Dr. Skren

Skren takes a seat on a couch and recounts the basics of their last job, how it went wrong and how they're now laying low, as she sips her beer. She makes her disdain for the establishment very clear during all of this, but omits her reasons, as well as how Hexe fits into all of it specifically, except for the fact that she can handle herself very well in combat, as proven last night.

Arbiter Dox

Murdock listens to the story quietly. At the end, he nods and says, "That all makes sense." He looks to Hexe and says, "Th' main question I've got right now is how a kid like you ends up so geared and prepped for combat. That's a detail I'm willin' t' gloss over it you'd rather keep quiet about it."

Dr. Skren

Skren looks at Hexe, waiting for her response

H.Ex.E.

"It's... difficult to be on the lower stairs as a child on Fuldor.", she replies, hoping it is not too vague for Murdock. "Childhood is short there. Either because you have to grow up fast to survive, or because you simply do not survive this long." The girl's usually monotone voice definitely sounds embittered now.

Arbiter Dox

Murdock nods and says, "Yeah. Used to live there m'self, I know what you mean." He seems satisfied with that answer for now.

Dr. Skren

Skren nods

Arbiter Dox

"Alright. So. Aside from combat, what kinda stuff are you guys able to do?"

H.Ex.E.

"Anything tech related and surveillance, both concealed if necessary." Hexe explains her part. "And whatever the Doctor needs a hand with." She looks a Skren and her gaze becomes a bit softer again, a potential smile hidden by her oversized jacket's collar.

Dr. Skren

"Yeah, crafting, building, hacking... and I got some medical knowledge under my belt."

Arbiter Dox

Murdock nods and says, "Alright. I'll keep that in mind. Always good to have another pair of hands around."

Dr. Skren

Skren gives a thumbs up and downs the rest of her beer "Oh yeah, also breaking things." "As in sabotage"

H.Ex.E.

"But not only there..." Hexe's cheeky remark follows soon after.

Dr. Skren

"Shush you" Skren sticks out her tongue at the girl

Arbiter Dox

"Alright. Well, last thing to mention. You figured out the actual target of last night's attack yet?"

Dr. Skren

The doctor tilts her head and rubs her chin. "Might have had a bit too much to drink for that."

H.Ex.E.

"The news said the raids became somewhat regular. You mentioned the police is inapt, they claim the lack of resources is the reason. So they might be in cahoots together. And all that secrecy..." She makes a waving gesture across the room. "... implies that the ToB having to go through such lengths means they have it on their radar as well." Hexe ends her analysis she scraped together with the limited data at hand.

Arbiter Dox

"Well. The main actual target was me. You notice that one lady went straight for me? That was an assassin. Probably the actual leader of the group; Brick's about as smart as his name implies."

Dr. Skren

"Oh right, there was that woman"

H.Ex.E.

"The only one smart enough to escape as well. And that cloaking device was likely not exactly cheap either." Hexe narrows her exes slightly as she looks at Murdock. "Would you mind returning the favour and tell us some more about your role in that story?"

Arbiter Dox

Murdock nods. "Sure."

H.Ex.E.

Hexe is visibly perplexed about such openness for a second before she regains control over herself.

Arbiter Dox

"So like I said earlier, I've been out here about 20 years. While I've been here, I've been quietly trying to build and design a self-sustaining community." "This's me, Marle, and Rawlins working together. We've been working on power generation, organizing for mutual aid, food production and preservation, that kind of thing." "If that works--and it is working--we're going to try to spread these measures to other towns nearby."

Dr. Skren

"Quite an endeavor"

H.Ex.E.

"It might be too early to ask, but the assassin was sent by...? The Hand? They likely are not too fond of such a project."

Arbiter Dox

"Probably. The Invisible Hand or some other establishment group. Can't really tell based on what we've seen so far." "Now, I can take care of myself unless I am literally disarmed." He wiggles the fingers on his mechanical hand to emphasize. "So they're gonna have a hard time of it. But that probably wasn't her last attempt."

Dr. Skren

"Maybe we should set up some kinda trap for when she shows up. Would probably be useful to find out who exactly sent her."

Arbiter Dox

He nods. "I try to handle security myself usually, but if you've got ideas I'm willin' to hear 'em."

Dr. Skren

"I'mma try coming up with something. Preferably something that fucks with her cloaking device."

H.Ex.E.

"And where do we come in? In such a close-knitted community it is probably not exactly easy to get us strangers into it." Hexe returns to their previous topic.

Arbiter Dox

"Well, more folks ready to fight means less chance for the assassin to finish her job. Rawlins has been tracking a few weird things going on around here. Nothin' solid enough to make plans for yet, but we might need some eyes on other problems if they come up. Apparently there actually is something weird mutilatin' cattle around Greenfield." "Basically, can't really predict what all we're gonna need. Got a feelin' the next year or two's gonna be hectic."

Dr. Skren

"Guess that camera guy wasn't just talking out his ass then, huh?"

Arbiter Dox

"Rawlins might 'a mentioned it to 'im, yeah."

Arbiter Dox

"Right, well. Your rooms are over there." Murdock points down a door leading to a few small dormrooms. "You two're th' only ones here right now, so you've got your pick of the room." The rooms are small, but they include comfortable beds. Pretty nice for an underground safehouse. The duo have some time to put up their stuff and prepare to settle down for a while.
===END SESSION 4===